On November 17, 2014, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued CSMS# 14-000598 clarifying the difference between a valid, invalid, and defective North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Certificate of Origin.
Per the CSMS, NAFTA Certificate of Origins are defined as follows:
- Valid- NAFTA Certificate of Origin:
- Lists the good in question
- Covers the period in question
- Includes the exporter’s or his agent’s signature in block 11a “Authorized Signature
- Was in the importer’s possession at the time of the claim
- Invalid
- If it does not meet the above-mentioned requirements.
- Defective
- Meets the conditions of a Valid NAFTA Certificate of Origin, but contains other errors
- May be remedied
CBP furthermore explains that, “In addition to defining the aforementioned terms, this CSMS posting serves as a reminder that NAFTA preference will be denied if the importer does not possess a valid NAFTA Certificate of Origin at the time of the preference claim.”
The CSMS can be accessed online at:
http://apps.cbp.gov/csms/viewmssg.asp?Recid=20379&page=&srch_argv=&srchtype=&btype=&sortby=&sby=
